Loose-leaf binder



June 9, 1942. A. G. LOTTER LOOSE'LEAF BINDER Filed March 24, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 June 9, 1942. v A. G. LOTTER 2,285,525

LOOSE LEAF BINDER Filed March 24, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented June 9, 1942 UNETED STATES TENT OFFICE LOOSE-LEAF BINDER Application March 24, 1941, Serial No. 384,783

2 Claims.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in loose leaf binders, and refers more particularly to loose leaf ledger books of the type used with machine bookkeeping.

In ledger books of this character rapid access to the ledger sheets must be provided to enable their bodily removal for posting.

In the past, the leaves of such ledger books generally have been retained by binder posts which pass through aligned apertures located in the body of leaves. To facilitate removal and insertion of the leaves, the edges of some ledger sheets were provided with slits forming entrances to their post receiving holes.

Such a construction enables substantially quick withdrawal of ledger sheets but renders the reinsertion of sheets difiicult, as such reinsertion entails the exercise of considerable care in aligning the slits of the leaves with the binder posts.

This manner of removably holding the leaves 1 is also objectionable in that the sheets of the ledger are frequently torn during removal or reinsertion into the binder at the edge of the leaves containing the holes and slits.

One proposed construction having as its purpose to overcome these objections in loose leaf ledger books provides for complete withdrawal of the posts of the binder to facilitate removal and withdrawal of ledger sheets. Such a construction is shown in Patent No. 1,973,174 issued to Adolph G. Lotter, September 11, 1934. This arrangement greatly facilitates bodily removal of ledger sheets, but is unsatisfactory in that the posts can only be reinserted after the stack of leaves has been carefully arranged to align the apertures throughout the entire body of the stack.

With these and other objectionable features of existing loose leaf ledger books in mind, this invention has as a general object to provide a new and improved manner of readily removably holding ledger sheets in a loose leaf binder whereby the binder is especially adapted for use in machine bookkeeping.

More specifically this invention has as its object to provide a loose leaf ledger book with separable binder heads capable of holding the leaves in the binder by the application of clamping force alone onto the body of leaves.

Inasmuch as the binder of this invention contemplates holding a stack of ledger sheets by clamping the same, it is apparent that the necessity for providing the leaves with holes and the binder with posts insertable into the holes is eliminated. The leaves of the stack are thus entirely free for removal and reinsertion when the clamping force exerted thereon by the binder heads is relieved.

Another object of this invention is to provide a clamp type binder of the character'described with means for preventing accidental displacement of the ledger sheets in the body of the stack due to sudden jars or dropping of the book.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a clamp type binder of the character described with means connected thereto and eX- tending into the body of the leaves at intervals in its depth to have frictional engagement with adjacent leaves of the stack and thereby prevent accidental displacement of such leaves.

With the above and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, this invention resides in the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts substantially as hereinafter described and more particularly defined by the appended claims, it being understood that such changes in the precise embodiment of the hereindisclosed invention may be made as come within the scope of the claims.

The accompanying drawings illustrate several complete examples of the physical embodiment of the invention constructed according to the best modes so far devised for the practical application of the principles thereof, and in which:

Figure 1 illustrates a loose leaf ledger book constructed in accordance with the principals of this invention;

Figures 2, 3, and 4 illustrate slightly modified embodiments of the invention;

Figure 5 illustrates a modified form of loose leaf binder constructed to readily removably hold ledger sheets by clamping; and

Figure 6 is an enlarged sectional view taken through Figure 5 on the plane of the line 6-6.

Referring now particularly to the accompanying drawings, in which like numerals indicate like parts, and especially to Figure 1, the numeral 5 generally designates the back of the loose leaf ledger which is composed of two separable back sections or heads 6 and 1, respectively.

The back sections have side walls 8 and 9, respectively, arranged opposite to each other to form clamping heads between which the head end IU of a stack of leaves II is adapted to be clamped.

The side walls or clamping heads 8 and 9 of the back sections each have a pair of male and female telescoping members l2 and [3, respectively, at their ends which cooperate to detachably connect the back sections and to guide the same for motion to and from a position in which the clamping heads securely grip the head end I of the stack of leaves therebetween.

Flanges I4 and I5 on the back sections 6 and 1, respectively, extend toward each other and nor mally overlap to conjointly form an end wall for the binder against which the head end of the stack of leaves is engaged and by means of which the stack may be squared. These flanges, as will be understood, are of a length to maintain the end of the binder closed even during expansion of the stack of leaves up until full capacity of the ledger.

As is seen in Figure l the head end of the stack of leaves is positioned between the opposite sets of telescoping members I2 and I3 with the side edges of the stack substantially directly adjacent thereto. It is to be seen, therefore, that the telescoping members do not project through the body of the stack of leaves as in previous loose leaf ledger books.

As will be apparent, the stack is securely clamped by motion of the clamping heads toward each other into firm frictional engagement with the opposite faces of the stack.

The means for holding the clamping heads in clamping position forms no part of this invention and thus has not been illustrated. It is sufficient to state that the binder is of a type wherein the back sections are locked with their clamping heads in clamping positions on the stack by exerting a sudden force on the clamping heads in a direction to move the same toward one another while the binder is in one position, and that the sections are separable by exerting a similar force on the clamping sections while the binder is in another position.

The clamping force exerted on the opposite faces of the stack H by the clamping heads is more than adequate to securely hold the leaves of the stack adjacent thereto against accidental displacement. When the stack has little depth, therefore, there will be little tendency for the sheets in the body of the stack to become dislodged due to dropping or jarring of the binder.

With a large stack of leaves, however, the leaves in the body of the stack, that is, inwardly or remote from the points of application of clamping force onto the opposite faces of the stack by the clamping heads would ordinarily have a tendency to slide out from between the clamping heads in the event the book was accidentally dropped or jarred.

To overcome this possibility, the present invention provides for positively holding the leaves of the stack in the body thereof against accidental displacement.

To this end, friction strips I6 are distributed in the stack of leaves at the head end thereof at spaced intervals throughout the depth of the stack. These strips may, if desired, be secured to the index sheets of the loose leaf ledger inasmuch as these sheets do not require removal for posting and may remain assembled with the binder.

The friction strips are of a length to extend out beyond the side edges of the stack of leaves to have an interengaging connection with the telescoping members I2 and I3 of the binder. As shown in Figure 1, this interengaging connection between the extended ends of the friction strips and the telescoping members is afforded by providing substantially semi-circular notches IT at the edges of the strip to receive the adjaat each end of the clamping heads.

cent portions of the telescoping members therein. This manner of connecting the friction strips permits removal of the index sheets when attached to the strips upon separation of the complementary back sections, inasmuch as the interengaging connection confines the ledger sheets to motion only in a direction lengthwise of the telescoping members.

Being dispersed substantially uniformly throughout the body of the leaves at the head end of the stack and connected to the binder, the friction strips serve to anchor the sheets of the stack inwardly of its side faces which are engaged by the clamping heads against accidental displacement.

The strips may be of any suitable material such as thin metal, heavy paper, cardboard or a plastic material.

While the strips in the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figure 1 are shown provided with two notches H in each projecting edge thereof, a construction such as illustrated in the embodiment of Figure 2 serves equally as well to anchor the strips to the telescoping members. As herein shown, the projecting edge of the strip have but a single notch I8 formed therein for engagement with the complementary male and female telescoping members of the binder adjacent to the end wall of the binder.

If desired, the strips may be of a length such as to accommodate a pair of holes in their projecting edges as illustrated at I9 in Figure 3, to receive the entire diameter of the telescoping members I2 and I3.

In Figure 4, the strip is modified to the extent that it projects from the stack of sheets only at its edge adjacent to the back of the binder to provide a hook 29 engageable behind the male and female telescoping members adjacent to the end wall of the binder.

The binder is also capable of a construction such as illustrated in Figure 5. As herein shown the clamping heads 8 and 9 are adjustably connected by means of projectible binding posts 22 These posts are of conventional design and are projected and retracted by means of a key actuated operating shaft 23 located in one of the clamping heads to adjust the space between the clamping heads and effect clamping and release of the body of leaves.

Interengaging channel shaped guides 24 and 25 carried by the clamping heads 8 and 9, respectively, at their opposite ends adjacent to the binding posts 22 but exteriorly of the posts cooperate to guide the clamping heads of the back sections during clamping and release of the stack of sheets. These guides are shaped to embrace the binding posts as clearly illustrated in Figure 6, and are formed with a shoulder 26 adjacent to but spaced from the binder back formed conjointly by the flanges I4 and I5.

This shoulder 26 serves the same purpose as the telescoping members I2 and I3 of the embodiment of the invention first described, in that it provides for anchoring the friction strips to the binder.

Accordingly, the friction strips 28, which may either be independent of the stack of leaves or secured to the index sheets thereof as hereinbefore described, are extended at the side edges of the stack to provide hooks 29 engageable behind the shoulders 26 to anchor the same to the binder.

If desired, the flanges I4 and I5 which coopcrate to form the end wall of the binder may be constructed as in the aforesaid Patent No. 1,973,174, that is, alternately offset with respect to each other as seen in Figure 6 to provide alternately raised and lowered wall portions 30 and 3] on the back sections. Such a construction is advantageous in that the end wall of the binder against which the head of the stack of leaves engages lies entirely in one plane.

Strips 32 on the raised portions of each of the flanges may also be provided. These strips have their surfaces adjacent to the head of the stack serrated for engagement by the edges of the ledger sheets. The serrations enable the leaves to maintain their positions when the binder is placed on its end wall as shown in Figure 5 and the covers thrown open.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings it will be readily apparent that this invention greatly facilitates withdrawal and reinsertion of loose leaf ledger sheets of the type used with machine bookkeeping through the provision of a binder head operable to hold the stack of sheets by friction developed through the application of a clamping force on the stack of sheets.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. In a loose leaf binder of the type adapted to hold a stack of leaves solely through friction developed by the exertion of a clamping force on the stack of leaves: a binder back comprising complementary back sections, cooperating telescoping means carried at the ends of said back sections to guide the same for movement toward and from each other, each of said back sections including a clamping head; and a stack of leaves having one end positioned between said clamping heads and clamped thereby, said stack comprising leaves fitting entirely between said cooperating telescoping guide means so as to be unrestrained against withdrawal from the stack except by the clamping force of the clamping heads whereby said leaves are readily insertable and removable from the stack upon relative movement of the back sections away from each other to carry the clamping heads out of clamping relationship with the stack of leaves, and other leaves having portions thereof extending outwardly of the sides of the stack at said end thereof connected to the cooperating telescoping guide means wholly exteriorly of the stack of leaves so as to be restrained against withdrawal from the binder in a direction lengthwise of the leaves, said restrained leaves being disposed at spaced apart levels of the stack and having friction means thereon in the clamping zone defined by said clamping heads engaging adjacent unrestrained leaves to hold the same against accidental displacement while the clamping heads are in clamping position with respect to the stack of leaves.

2. In a loose leaf binder of the type adapted to hold a stack of leaves solely through friction developed by the exertion of a clamping force on the stack of leaves: a binder back comprising opposed clamping heads adapted to have covers hingedly connected thereto; clamping heads extending toward each other and cooperating to form an extensible end wall for the binder back; flexible projectible and retractible binder posts connecting said clamping heads adjacent to the opposite ends thereof for moving the same to and from a clamping position with respect to a stack of leaves positioned therebetween; a stack of leaves having its head end clamped between the clamping heads and engaged with the end wall of the binder back to be squared thereby, said stack of leaves being disposed entirely between the binding posts so as to be held in the binder back wholly by the clamping force of said clamping heads; interengaging means carried by the clamping heads adjacent to the binding posts cooperating to prevent fiexure of that portion of the posts extending between the clamping heads and to guide the clamping heads for motion to and from their clamping position with respect to said stack of leaves; and at least one friction strip disposed fiatwise between the leaves of the stack inwardly of the opposite faces thereof in the clamping zone defined by the clamping heads, said friction strip having portions projecting out beyond the sides of the head end of the stack engaged with said guiding means to restrain the strip against motion in a plane parallel to the plane of the leaves and serving to securely hold the leaves in the body of the stack inwardly of the opposite faces thereof against accidental displacement from the binder by frictional engagement with adjacent leaves of the stack.

ADOLPH G. LOTTER.

flanges on the 

